The statement ‘you are what you eat’ is an interesting concept to ponder. I understand that in believing this concept I am a very strange mix of things. In general I am a terrible (unhealthy) college student. I smoke cigarettes, drink alcohol, and participate in many of the things that you would associate with that lifestyle. When I think about exercise I feel kind of bad about myself. I love being healthy and working out, but basically I am just too lazy. During the summer I work out every day but when I return to school I just stop and give up. Doing it is not hard but I lose all motivation.
In addition to being this “unhealthy” person, I am also a conscious eater, and I enjoy eating organic, local, and whole grain foods. Every morning I eat a pretty balanced breakfast consisting of a combination of some of the following items: yogurt with frozen or fresh berries, granola, grapefruit, green tea, english muffins, cream of wheat, eggs, etc. After breakfast I take a multivitamin, Vitamin C, and fish oil. I follow these with my prescription and cigarettes (ahhhh!!!). Generally, I start off my day pretty well nutrition-wise, but come dinner it’s not always too good. Throughout the day I often forget to eat, but I am a water addict so I am always hydrated. I enjoy foods with stories and meaning behind them and I think a lot about the recipes that I make and I like to utilize the ingredients and styles my mother uses in her own kitchen. But at times, like a stereotypical college student, I get lazy and sometimes all I want to do is order a pizza or go to McDonalds. And I choose these relatively cheap and easy alternatives because I simply enjoy them and I don’t try to deny it. In dealing with and discussing fast food I feel no reason to stigmatize it because the way I see it is ‘what the hell?’ I might as well eat what I want and what I will enjoy at the moment because I know that fast food is not the only cuisine in my repertoire. So, I’ll just say it… I love fast food!
In taking prescription medication (*not recreationally) I experience a conflict with the ideals that I was raised with and my own personal opinion, which strangely enough are congruent. My family definitely frowns upon most, if not all, prescription medication. I am definitely not a proponent of the drugs but in my case they make my life easier. I am pretty hypocritical when I discuss prescription medication because generally, I take the opposing side and then am forced to confront the fact that I myself am a prescription drug patient.
Combs, Gerald. The Vitamins : Fundamental Aspects in Nutrition and Health. San Diego: Academic Press, 1992. Print.
I think you brought up an interesting point in mentioning prescription drugs and the accompanying debate about whether or not to use them. I myself have pondered this, and this debate is such a uniquely personal one that I feel that I have to be careful to not make generalities when discussing this (in general I try to avoid sweeping generalities; I can really only speak for myself and my personal experiences, but I especially feel the need to be careful with this topic. Our state of physical and mental health is such an individual experience). In considering the use of prescription drugs, which, let's face it, are becoming more normal for anyone (of any age) to find a reason to use as they are more and more mainstreamed and marketed to us...(another choice for us as consumers-as Lindsey brings up in her post; not to mention as health seekers....), we have to weigh the potential benefits with the potential side effects that may include some pretty unappealing things. We also face the questions of how long we will stay on this medication (and what are the ramifications of long-term use?), if it's the right dosage (and facing the potentially long process of trying different levels and combinations of other drugs that may treat the health concern), and if it is truly necessary, or perhaps are there other methods of treating the cause of imbalance in the system that have less detrimental outcomes? Prescription drugs are definitely an area of consumption that I am wary of, yet see the benefits of for many people. This internal dilemma is part of the reason that I sought out acupuncture as an alternative to what felt like to me "buying in" to the prescription drug world, a world that wasn't serving me very well at the time. I want to reiterate that I share this only to speak of my personal choice and experience, and I don't harbor the belief that everyone should dump their drugs down the toilet in favor of alternative health care practices; we all need to find what is right for ourselves. But I do think that it can be tempting in the face of marketing, how readily available prescription drugs are, and how quickly they may take effect, to become a social consumer (to use this idea again) instead of a seeker of genuine, organic (in the sense of inherent in the system) health. This of course depends on the health conditions that we are trying to treat, and their respective causes. Some conditions are never going to go away without intervening drugs, regardless of how much insight one has and dietary measures one takes...and many health concerns are manageable with alternative approaches, if one is willing to put in the time, energy and money to pursue this path.
ReplyDeleteAs you mentioned on my post, we do share some similar views. It is good to eat healthy, but will only do so if the benefit is really that great, or it tastes good. So why not live life to the fullest. We might as well enjoy what we got, and as young college students, do it as often as we safely can. Outside of smoking, we both do pretty much the same things (alas, I forgot the medication as well, but whatever). So it stands that we consume the best tasting things on the planet, because that is what I find enjoyable, where, like you, I'd rather not think of exercising.
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